Ralph just ain't gettin' er done

[scarey1999]

This might sound crazy... but not that crazy.

I think Maryland should look into Larry Johnson, Sr. (the d-line coach at Penn State and father of Larry Johnson the RB).

Coach Johnson was the football coach at my high school - McDonough - where he won 3 state championships and won more games in the 1980's than any other Maryland public high school football program. He left in 1991 and soon joined up at Penn State.

Last year, when the Terps lost a bulk of stud recruits to Penn State... I read an article (perhaps the Post) that talked in depth about how Larry Johnson had single handedly raided the cream of the crop right from under Maryland's nose.

Of course, he hasn't been a head coach in some time... but why the hell not!?

I would think LJ Sr is waiting for the PSU job. You have to think it will be basically gift wrapped for him once JoPa retires in a year or two.

[JohnD]

If Neuheisel ever, EEEEEEEEEVER becomes the coach at Maryland, I give up on football. I don't want some cheating, no good slimeball running the program there. I know all of the coaches cheat to some degree. But Rick is where I draw the line, and that was before he ever even got a job with the Ravens. You all can trust me to be honest in my assessments of the Ravens when it comes to players and coaches, but this guy has been a lout with every program he's ever been involved with. It would be a disaster. I'd rather Cosh get the head job somehow than Rick Neuheisel.

[Dr. FLK]

If Neuheisel ever, EEEEEEEEEVER becomes the coach at Maryland, I give up on football. I don't want some cheating, no good slimeball running the program there. I know all of the coaches cheat to some degree. But Rick is where I draw the line, and that was before he ever even got a job with the Ravens. You all can trust me to be honest in my assessments of the Ravens when it comes to players and coaches, but this guy has been a lout with every program he's ever been involved with. It would be a disaster. I'd rather Cosh get the head job somehow than Rick Neuheisel.

Wow. Can you provide some insight on his cheating? All I am aware of is his participation in a March Madness pool for relatively high dollars. Is there more?

[Todd-O]

I would think LJ Sr is waiting for the PSU job. You have to think it will be basically gift wrapped for him once JoPa retires in a year or two.

You know what... I think you're right. Larry Johnson has been groomed for the position and I think he'll take over. He's a great guy and a great football coach... I'm sure he'll take PSU places if he gets a shot.

[Birds of B'more]

Wow. Can you provide some insight on his cheating? All I am aware of is his participation in a March Madness pool for relatively high dollars. Is there more?

The only other thing I'm aware of is when Colorado was forced to forfeit 5 wins in 1997 because they used an ineligible player. But if people are going to harp on things like that then you can probably rule out half the coaches in major college football.

[glenn__davis]

Yeah, I'm a little curious as well. He at least doesn't have a public perception of being a "bad guy". What do you know that we don't, John?

[topterp21921]

I think everyone is over reacting now and we need to step into reality. You guys think we are actually going to get someone BETTER than Ralph to come here? Get a grip. The reality is we are a basketball school that happens to string together a decent football team once in a while. So the guy has had a few bad years. They aren't going to fire the Fridge cause he got beat by Wake Forest.

[Tony-OH]

I think everyone is over reacting now and we need to step into reality. You guys think we are actually going to get someone BETTER than Ralph to come here? Get a grip. The reality is we are a basketball school that happens to string together a decent football team once in a while. So the guy has had a few bad years. They aren't going to fire the Fridge cause he got beat by Wake Forest.

No, they should fire Fridge because the team has gotten worse since he started playing with his own recruits. Wake Forest and Virginia have been able to get high profile guys to come in so there is no reason Maryland can't either.

Fridge had a nice run, and I thank him for making football relevent again at Maryland since Boomer Esiason, but let's face it, the program has stagnated at best and it's time to move on.

[Mackus]

Fridge had a nice run, and I thank him for making football relevent again at Maryland since Boomer Esiason, but let's face it, the program has stagnated at best and it's time to move on.

They missed a bowl two years, but made it back and played well last season. Lets give him more than one loss to a decent team this season before signing his death certificate.

All the criticism Fridge gets is a bit ridiculous, IMO. And I think its way, way too soon to be talking about firing him. Fortunately, that's not something that is even remotely likely to happen.

[OregonBird]

They missed a bowl two years, but made it back and played well last season. Lets give him more than one loss to a decent team this season before signing his death certificate.

All the criticism Fridge gets is a bit ridiculous, IMO. And I think its way, way too soon to be talking about firing him. Fortunately, that's not something that is even remotely likely to happen.

I don't think anybody is on here saying "fire him." We all know that isn't going to happen anytime soon.

Here is what I see happening. The Terps will not go to a bowl game this year and will finish with 5 wins. Terps fans everywhere will say how next year will be different because Portis will be back, etc.

Next year ('08) the Terps offense will be a little better, still less than "robust" and will go to a lesser bowl game (Champs, Continental Tire) and everyone will be happy. They will say that the program is trending upward, the team is talented, etc. We'll have Portis for one more year ('09) but will there be a QB in the pipeline ready to fully take over afterward. Basically the chances for success are in '08 and '09.

[BaltimoreTerp]

I don't think anybody is on here saying "fire him." We all know that isn't going to happen anytime soon.

Fridge had a nice run, and I thank him for making football relevent again at Maryland since Boomer Esiason, but let's face it, the program has stagnated at best and it's time to move on.

Hmm......?

[Birds of B'more]

No, they should fire Fridge because the team has gotten worse since he started playing with his own recruits. Wake Forest and Virginia have been able to get high profile guys to come in so there is no reason Maryland can't either.

Fridge had a nice run, and I thank him for making football relevent again at Maryland since Boomer Esiason, but let's face it, the program has stagnated at best and it's time to move on.

While you bring up a valid concern about Fridge's lack of success with his own recruits, let's not hold Wake up as the shining example of what Maryland should be just yet. They made a great run to win the ACC Championship last season with a team heavy on 4th and 5th-year players, and a very good young QB who came out of nowhere. But I think we can all agree that the other traditional powers in the conference were down last season, and I think that helped the Deacons. I want to see how they do the next couple years before I'm ready to say they have a program superior to MD's.

And definitely don't mention UVA under Al Groh as an example of what we want to be.........don't even go there. UVA has invested far more dollars in their facilties than MD has, and yet their best ever finish under Groh was 3rd place in the ACC when they won 9 games in 2002 (and they played 14 total that season). And yes, IIRC UVA has had higher rated recruiting classes than the Terps........making the results all-the-more disappointing. How Groh still has his job there is beyond me.

[Dr. FLK]

They missed a bowl two years, but made it back and played well last season. Lets give him more than one loss to a decent team this season before signing his death certificate.

All the criticism Fridge gets is a bit ridiculous, IMO. And I think its way, way too soon to be talking about firing him. Fortunately, that's not something that is even remotely likely to happen.

Making it to a mediocre bowl after a disappointing season should not be the goal here. This program is declining. They missed bowls 2 years in a row, and they weren't that good last year. They don't even look like they belong on the same field as WVU anymore (I'm not saying they should win, but they look like a little league team). The once imaginative offense is now boring and predictable. They barely eek out wins over FIU 2 years in a row. I'm totally with Tony on this one. Maybe Fridge is a good offensive mind, but he certainly stinks at recruiting...and that's a pretty huge part of being a college coach.

[Todd-O]

I have to tell you... at this point I've almost seen enough of Friedgen. I wouldn't be sorry to see him walk. Your duty as a coach is the recruit and teach. The Fridge seems to be good out of squeezing juice out of a nut... but every time you turn around he has a pile of nuts rather than oranges.

I still can't believe that after all of these years, he doesn't have Steffy ready.

I agree with the sentiment that the Terps aren't moving forward... they really eeked it out last year and ended up getting hammered in the last 2 games of the ACC.

[topterp21921]

No matter who the coach is can anyone ever honestly see the Terps play for a national championship? As much as I would love to see it, it's not going to happen no matter who is coaching the team. And in my mind that is the goal for every college football team. To play for the national championship not just go to a decent bowl. My point is that changing coaches won't change a thing. As long as the SEC stays dominant and we continue to be out-recruited by the more traditional football schools, this is what we are left with. So I say enough Fridge bashing and support who we are, not who we are not going to be.